Thread-handling mechanism



H. D. COLMAN THREAD HANDLING MECHANISM Sept. 18, 1928. 1,684,945

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Sept. 18, 1928. 1,684,945

H. D. COLMAN THREAD HANDLING MECHANISM I Filed Sept 1924 5 Sheets5heet '4 W m mum 6v Urciensiie Ub e /J.

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- H. D. COLMAN THREAD HANDLING MECHANISM Filed Sept. 26, 1924 s Sheets-Sheet 5 fizz 2221022- flowarcb D. 606mm,

Patented Sept. 18, 1928. i

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HOWARD D. COLMAN, OF ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOE TO BARBER-COLMAN COM- PANY, OF ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

THREAD-HANIDLING MECHANISM.

Application filed September 26, 1824.

This invention relates to machines for operating upon warps, as, for example, machines for drawing warp threads through the eyes of loom harnesses. A machine of the above mentioned type is disclosed in the Field, Hathawayand Lanning Patent No. 871,680, dated November 19, 1907. It is customary in such machines toemploy a needle having a hook to receive the thread to bedrawn through the harness eye, and to provide means for turning the needle to enable the hook to receive the thread.

A particular object of the present invention is to adapt a warp-drawing machine for operation upon wire heddles. have eyes which are too narrow to receive the cylindrical needle heretofore commonly used in warp-drawing machines. I therefore provide a thin flat needle of such crosssectional dimensions as to enable it to enter the eyes of wire heddles. Inasmuch as the needle cannot be turned whilev'in the heddle eye to grasp the thread which is to be drawn through the eye, I provide means for so po sitioning the thread that it shall be caught in the hook of the needle without any neces sity for turning the latter.

The usual speed of operation of the needle is 250 reciprocations per minute. The means heretofore provided to give the needle a partial rotation near the outer end of its torward stroke has consisted of a guideway having a quarter-turn near its forward end and a pin projecting from the needle holder and traveling in said guideway. Near the for- Ward end of the needle stroke said pin entered the curved portion of the guideway and thus caused the needle holder and the needle to turn through an arc of ninety degrees. On the return stroke the pin again engaged the curved portion of the guidoway and restored the needle holder and the needle to normal Such heddles siiion- As will be readily understood, the '71 (F g. at),

Serial at. 740,013.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the pattern mechanism.

F ig. 3 is a fragmental view of the drive for the thread-selecting worms. I

Fig. 4 is a fragm-ental plan view showing the needle projected through a harness eye into engagement with a warp thread.

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the parts shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 6 is an underside view of the parts shown in Figs. 4 and 5.

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken approximately in the plane of line 77' of Fig. 4..

Figs. 8, 9, 10 and 11 are perspective views illustrating the action of the needle and the chine.

The elements to be operated upon by the machine, i. c., the reed, the harnesses, the warp or warps, and the drop wires, if any, are supported in a generally parallel arrangement-lengthwise of the machine. The par-- ticular machine shown in the drawings is adapted to operate upon four cotton harnesses h, a reed (not shown), and two sheets or groups of warp threads. Each harness consists of a plurality of heddles it (Figs. 7 and 11) having eyes if. The heddle eyes are positioned for the passage of the warpdrawing neodle by means including worms there being one worm for each harness.

The warp-drawing needle 3 (Fig. 10) is in the form of a relatively thin flat bar standing on edge. The forward end of the bar is slightly reduced in thickness and has a downwardly-opening thread-receiving hook loo 3. Theneedle is carried by a mechanism carriage 5 which is caused to travel longitudinally of the machine.

Th d awing-11 needle maybe horizontah 1y rcciprocated in any suitable manner. As shown herein, it is actuated by means including a crank disk 17 connected by a rod 19 with an arm 21, the lower end of which is fulcrumed on the carriage and the upper end of which is connected by a link 23 with the needle holder which slides in a guide 25. Instead of providing means for giving the needle a partial rotation near the outer end of its stroke, as heretofore, the needle is reciprocated with its hook 3f continually di-,

rected downwardly. v

The warp threads are positloned for reception in the hook 3 by means including two warp worms 57 and 59 mounted on shafts 61 and 63, respectively. Each warp worm comprises a frnsto-conical' fluted portion which first receives, disentangles and separates the warp threads and a selecting, spacing and feeding screw or worm portion by which the threads are presented to the hook ,da ted Ma 24, 1921.

of the drawing-in needle successively. For a more detailed description of the warp worms, reference may be made to the Field Patent No. 1282059, dated October 22, 1918, and the Field and Lanning Patent No. 1,305,705, dated June 3, 1919.

The'harness worm rods 71,4 and the warp worm shafts 61 and 63 are journaled in bearings on the mechanism carriage 5, the bearings for the warp worm shafts being formed in a bracket 5 on the carriage 5.

The reed opener (not shown), the'harncss worms k and the warp worms 57 and 59 are 'The sheet of warp threads 119 extends from the clamp 113 around the worm shaft 63 to the clamp 117, in which latter clamp they are held loosely. The warp threads may be put under proper tension for the operation of the feeding, separating and selecting worms by adjusting the clamp 117 along the rods 11S. lVhile the same clamps are herein utilized for both groups of threads, it will be.

understood that separate clamps may be used for each group, if desired, as indicated in the Hathaway and Mars Patent No. 1,379,099,

As shown in Figs. 7 and 10, each warp worm presents to the inspection of the operator a series of spaced or separated threads prior to theirsuccessive engagement by the drawing-in needle, the threads extending in a generally vertical plane betweenthe warp worm and the clamp 113. As shown in Fig. 5, the needle is reciprocated between the foremost two threads of the series. In order to position the foremost thread so that it shall spring into the hook 3 as the needle is retracted, I provide, in conjunction with each of the warp worms,a device operating below the horizontal plane of reciprocation of the needle to deflect the foremost thread laterally of the needle (as shown in Fig. 9) so as to bend the thread under the needle,

whereby, upon the retraction of the needle.

the thread will spring up into the hook 3' (as shown in Fig. 10).. These thread-defleeting devices are supported upon a bracket: 122 which is pivoted to the bracket 5 at 123 i (F 5 andfi); .The bracket 122 carries a stop 124 (Fig. 5) arranged to coact with a stop screw 125 on the bracket 5 for the pur pose of accurately locating. the thread-deflect,- ing devices with relation to the needle and the thread. The bracket 122 is held in operative position by means of a contractile spring 126 connected at 127 to thebracket 122 and at 128 to the bracket 5', the point 127 being above a line passing through the points 123 and 128 when the bracket is in normal posit tion. chine the bracket122 may be swung down until the point 127 is below said line, a stop 129 on the bracket being then in contactwith the bracketv 5'.

The thread-deflecting device associated with the warp worm 57, comprises an arm 130 (Fig. 6) pivoted to the bracket 122 at 131 to swing in a horizontal plane and carrying a. pm 132 (Fig. 7) that engages a cam 133 which is rigid with the warp worm. Rigid with the arm 130 a sheet metal finger 134 arranged to engage the foremost thread and deflect it under. the needle.

1 Associated with the warp worm 59 is a thread-deflecting arm 135 pivoted to :the bracket 122 at 136 to swing .in a' horizontal plane and provided with a pin 137 that engages a cam 138 connected 'to said Warp worm. The arm 135 has a sheet metal finger 139 adapted to engage the foremost thread selected by said worm and bend it under the needle. I i

As shown in ig. 7, the deflectors 134 and 139 each present'a plain edge to the foremost thread, said edge extending across the plane of the warp (see Fig. 4), so that the foremost thread bears against said edge upon relative approaching movement of the thread and the deflector. I deflector hold that portion of the foremost thread which extends between the Worm and the deflector in an inclined position so that it is bent under the needle and toward the" companion spaced threads.

. When the bracket 122 is in its down posi tion, the arms and are prevented from For convenience in loading the ma-f Jun Each worm and its cooperating swingingtoo far out of proper position to en- 1 gage the cams 133 and 138 when the bracket is returned to normal position by means of stop screws 140 carried by the bracket 122, said screws having flanges that project into slot-s in the ends of said arms.

In operation, the warp worms are rotated in proper sequence to place threads from the beams in position to be taken by the needle 3 in the desired order. The needle enters between the foremost pair of threads of a given warp and relatively close to the foremost thread of the pair. As the warp worm comes to rest after advancing said threads, the cam 133 or 138, as the case may be, swings the thread-deflecting finger below the needle, thereby bending the foremost thread member the needle. When in the retraction of the needle, the hook 3 reaches the deflected thread, the latter springs up into the hook and is drawn out of the clamp 117 and through the heddle eye and the reed space.

I claim as my invention 1. A thread-handling.mechanism having in combination, a rotary thread-selecting worm, hooked drawing needle movable into position alongside a thread selected by said worm, a cam connected to rotate with said worm, a pivoted bracket, a deflector mounted on said bracket and arranged to be moved by said cam to bend said thread .across the needle whereby upon retraction of the needle the deflected thread springs into the hook, and a spring for yieldingly holding said bracket in operative position.

2. A thread-handling mechanism having, in combination, a rotary worm for selecting threads from a warp and presenting a series of spaced threads, 2. hooked drawing needle reciprocable between the foremost pair of spaced threads, a camconnected to rotate with said. worm, and a deflector arranged to be swung by said cam to bend the foremost thread across the needle whereby, upon re traction of the needle, the deflected thread springs into the hook.

8. A thread-handling mechanism having, in combination, a rotary worm for selecting threads from a. warp and presenting a series of spaced threads, a drawing needle in the form of a-relatively thin flat bar having a hook in its lower edge and rectilinearly reciprocable between the foremost pair of spaced threads, and a deflector to bend the foremost thread under the needle whereby upon retraction of the needle the deflected thread springs upinto the hook, said deflector having a disengageable driving connection with the worm. V

4. A thread-handling mechanism having, in combination, a selector for selecting threads from warp, a drawing needle in the form of a relatively thin flat bar having a hook in its lower edge. and rectilinearly' gage said cam and withdrawablefrom the cam on'morement of said support, said deflector bemg arranged to bend a selected thread across the needle whereby upon retraction of the needle the deflected thread springs into the hook, and means to limit movement of the deflector when the pin is out of engagement with the cam. v

6. A thread-handling mechanism having,

in combination, a thread selector, a hooked drawing needle movable into position alongside a thread selected by said worm, a cam, a' movable support, a deflector mounted on said support, and a pin on the deflector to engage said cam and withdrawable from the cam on movement of said support, said doflector being arranged to bend a selected thread across the needle whereby upon retraction of the needle the deflected thread springs into the hook.

7. A thread-handling mechanism having,

in combination, a rotary worm for selecting.

threads from a warp and for presenting a series of spaced threads, adrawing needle in the form of a relatively thin flat bar having a hook in its lower edge and rectilinearly reciprocable between the foremost pair of spaced threads, and a deflector located below the path of the needle and presenting a plain edge to the foremost thread, said edge ere tending across the plane of the warp so that the foremost thread bears against said edge upon relative approaching movement of said thread and the deflector, said Worm and deflector cooperating to hold that portion of said foremost thread which extends between he worm and the deflector in an inclined position so that it is bent under the needle and toward the companion spaced threads, where by upon retraction of the needle the deflected threads springs up into the hook.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto affixed my signature.

, nowaan'n. COLMAN.- 

